New Study Shows Vaping Is Not A Gateway To Smoking

According to an unprecedented longitudinal study researching the potential progression of college students ditching vaping for smoking, Virginia Commonwealth University students were 3.4 times as likely to be smoking tobacco after a year as young adults who don’t use e-cigarettes.

The study examined 3757 freshmen for the year to find out if vaping was used as a stepping-stone to smoking.

Dr. Michael Siegel, a professor in the department of Community Health Sciences, pointed out the study’s most relevant finding which was ignored by fierce vaping opponent Dr. Stanton Glantz. Glantz believes that the study adds to “evidence” that “just keeps piling up”.

Dr. Siegel continued: “What this means is that all we know for sure about the young people who Dr. Glantz would have us believe have become smokers because of e-cigarettes is that they have at least once tried a cigarette, but that they have not smoked a cigarette in the past 30 days.”

“So all these kids who Dr. Glantz would have us believe have been addicted to cancer sticks because of e-cigarettes are actually not current smokers.”

Gregory Conley, President of the American Vaping Association, similarly lauded the results and criticised those who say vaping is a gateway to smoking.

“For nearly a decade, anti-harm-reduction activists have been claiming that e-cigarette use would inevitably lead young people to become smokers.”

“The data is proving them wrong. As this study shows, young e-cigarette users may experiment with smoking, but that does not mean that these users are actually becoming smokers.”